I've often wondered what goes on in a bus garage. I know it sounds obvious, buses get parked up after a days work, they get serviced but I personally think what kind of time tabling goes on with the buses. Why does a certain bus get sent on a route while another stays at the garage. If I ever get the opportunity, I would happily take it and work in a garage as I would like to be around them magnificent vehicles !
Also I was wondering how big are the fuel tanks in the buses ?! How long do they last them on their journeys ?!
I'm just recently getting into bus hobby of mine and as such I'm just absorbing all the information I can get and as such I will be using this thread to post answers and probably opinions of mine. I'm using this thread as I don't want to litter other threads with non relevant topics.
Quote from: BusFan on April 03, 2015, 06:53:03 PM
I've often wondered what goes on in a bus garage. I know it sounds obvious, buses get parked up after a days work, they get serviced but I personally think what kind of time tabling goes on with the buses. Why does a certain bus get sent on a route while another stays at the garage. If I ever get the opportunity, I would happily take it and work in a garage as I would like to be around them magnificent vehicles !
Also I was wondering how big are the fuel tanks in the buses ?! How long do they last them on their journeys ?!
Looking at your comment about buses getting onto a route. Each bus will be parked in either a numbered space in the bus park (Each space is numbered I.e B2,C4 etc), In the garage itself it it is having work or by the fuel tanks (At WN garage anyway). When the buses park up at night, the allocator will mark up each bus for service in time for the next morning. The buses on the front line will tend to be allocated to buses leaving garage in the morning and buses further back will be allocated to later buses out of garage.
Sometimes, buses will be allocated to a peak extra Running Card. This is sometimes a bus that is due for work or an inspection during the day
Quote from: Nathan on April 03, 2015, 07:00:20 PM
Looking at your comment about buses getting onto a route. Each bus will be parked in either a numbered space in the bus park (Each space is numbered I.e B2,C4 etc), In the garage itself it it is having work or by the fuel tanks (At WN garage anyway). When the buses park up at night, the allocator will mark up each bus for service in time for the next morning. The buses on the front line will tend to be allocated to buses leaving garage in the morning and buses further back will be allocated to later buses out of garage.
Sometimes, buses will be allocated to a peak extra Running Card. This is sometimes a bus that is due for work or an inspection during the day
Thanks ! What happens to a bus when they finish their daily duties to them being parked up ?! I say this because I often go past BY and I see OmniLinks just lining like they have to be processed or something
Checked for lost property
Defaulted
Fuelled
Externally washed
Parked up
Swept off.
Then...
If any minor repairs - repaired
If due inspection - inspected
If due full clean - cleaned.
So many buses also have tyres checked
Some may get their advertising changed
Are the buses fueled on a daily basis ?! I remember chatting to an Acocks Green driver and I asked about the size of the tanks and he stated their fairly sizable and they can roughly 28 rounds of the 11 (I believe he was referring to Presidents as their usually allocated on the 11)
At Ampm buses were field in the evening then parked up & devaulted. Then when the fleet was in the mornings allocation was sorted as per how the buses were parked I.e front row allocated first duties with rear row allocated to later starts.At petes it the buses were allocated for the next day before they returned with no marked bays the mornings would be fun with drivers frantically looking for their bus only to find it completely blocked in, then rushing to find a bus that could be got out then driving that out and letting the office know which bus they had taken.
It was something you really had to see. How buses got out on time was a miracle.
Zaks had so much space it didn't matter how they were parked at night.
Drivers would drop their cash through a chute as they entered the garage then simply parked up. The engineers would then get the bus & fuel it before returning it to the spot they had taken it from.
Drivers mainly had the same bus each day so next morning they just went back to where they parked the bus the previous evening
Quote from: Steveminor on April 03, 2015, 08:11:15 PM
At Ampm buses were field in the evening then parked up & devaulted. Then when the fleet was in the mornings allocation was sorted as per how the buses were parked I.e front row allocated first duties with rear row allocated to later starts.At petes it the buses were allocated for the next day before they returned with no marked bays the mornings would be fun with drivers frantically looking for their bus only to find it completely blocked in, then rushing to find a bus that could be got out then driving that out and letting the office know which bus they had taken.
It was something you really had to see. How buses got out on time was a miracle.
Zaks had so much space it didn't matter how they were parked at night.
Drivers would drop their cash through a chute as they entered the garage then simply parked up. The engineers would then get the bus & fuel it before returning it to the spot they had taken it from.
Drivers mainly had the same bus each day so next morning they just went back to where they parked the bus the previous evening
It's fairly good NXWM have a good system in place then ! Imagine what would happen if the Allocator didn't show up
Quote from: BusFan on April 03, 2015, 08:06:08 PM
Are the buses fueled on a daily basis ?! I remember chatting to an Acocks Green driver and I asked about the size of the tanks and he stated their fairly sizable and they can roughly 28 rounds of the 11 (I believe he was referring to Presidents as their usually allocated on the 11)
I don't think you heard correctly!
28x26=728 miles. At 6 miles per gallon they would need a 122 gallon (552 litre) tank
Quote from: Tony on April 03, 2015, 08:28:50 PM
I don't think you heard correctly!
28x26=728 miles. At 6 miles per gallon they would need a 122 gallon (552 litre) tank
Do Presidents do 6 miles to the gallon ?! No wonder they banned from City Centre routes !
I suppose not although I'm assuming the buses that came after Presidents had improved efficiency
I must ask seeing as so many informed people are here but where do you lot get your info on all things bus, my only way of finding out is via this forum which I may see is quite good. Good Job Tony & Co
How much are the Tridents? What is the best bus in the fleet in terms of mpg.
Quote from: ronnoc1k8 on April 03, 2015, 09:14:33 PM
How much are the Tridents? What is the best bus in the fleet in terms of mpg.
I would surmise its probably the Enviro 400 and MMC and as I believe they were advertised for the fuel efficiency
I was wondering what are peoples view on a Mega Garage ?! Basically a big garage, I got the idea after checking out Stage Coach's West Ham garage and I was blown away by the sheer size of it. Seeing all those buses was quite the visual treat.
Has NXWM ever dabbled with that kind of idea ?!
Quote from: BusFan on April 03, 2015, 11:58:30 PM
I was wondering what are peoples view on a Mega Garage ?! Basically a big garage, I got the idea after checking out Stage Coach's West Ham garage and I was blown away by the sheer size of it. Seeing all those buses was quite the visual treat.
Has NXWM ever dabbled with that kind of idea ?!
It would have to be located optimally to reduce dead mileage costs. I'd guess it would be in same location as current BC garage or little further south/east to cover BC, BG, YW, PB, and AG garages. But then I doubt it would save enough on operations cost to cover dead mileage costs.
Quote from: BusFan on April 03, 2015, 11:58:30 PM
I was wondering what are peoples view on a Mega Garage ?! Basically a big garage, I got the idea after checking out Stage Coach's West Ham garage and I was blown away by the sheer size of it. Seeing all those buses was quite the visual treat.
Has NXWM ever dabbled with that kind of idea ?!
How many buses are in West Ham garage? I believe Wolverhampton has over 400.
Quote from: ronnoc1k8 on April 04, 2015, 09:31:40 AM
How many buses are in West Ham garage? I believe Wolverhampton has over 400.
Try counting how may are allocated to Wolverhampton on the main site! You will find 400 is way off the mark.
Quote from: Tony on April 04, 2015, 09:32:46 AM
Try counting how may are allocated to Wolverhampton on the main site! You will find 400 is way off the mark.
It said 400 on a fleet website. I re-counted and it's around 200.
Quote from: ronnoc1k8 on April 04, 2015, 09:31:40 AM
How many buses are in West Ham garage? I believe Wolverhampton has over 400.
West Ham has 222 buses allocated there
Quote from: Kiewii on April 04, 2015, 09:40:24 AM
West Ham has 222 buses
Last time I counted BC had 225 if I remember correctly.
Does West Ham park them all in the same yard, though, unlike BC.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on April 04, 2015, 10:06:04 AM
Last time I counted BC had 225 if I remember correctly.
Does West Ham park them all in the same yard, though, unlike BC.
BC has 218 as of today.
Haven't checked recently but does Olive Grove in Sheffield still have the largest allocation? It was around 250 at one point, can't remember if it still is.
Quote from: BusFan on April 03, 2015, 11:58:30 PM
I was wondering what are peoples view on a Mega Garage ?! Basically a big garage, I got the idea after checking out Stage Coach's West Ham garage and I was blown away by the sheer size of it. Seeing all those buses was quite the visual treat.
Has NXWM ever dabbled with that kind of idea ?!
The size of West Ham looks like nothing against First Gushetfaulds. ;)
Quote from: Matt on April 04, 2015, 11:01:16 AM
I don't know the numbers but I went to First's Bradford depot recently which seemed enormous - although in fairness I am used to a slightly smaller depot size!
Bradford is around 230 I think. Still a big depot though.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on April 04, 2015, 10:06:04 AM
Last time I counted BC had 225 if I remember correctly.
Does West Ham park them all in the same yard, though, unlike BC.
Yes, they do. West Ham also hold all the withdrawn/reserve and new buses
I suppose due to on site size restrictions, BC can't park all their buses just outside the main garage although its quite something that they needed extra land to accommodate their buses
I was reading that West Ham at its opening was the largest depot in the UK.
I would like the idea of AG and YW merging.
No point in merging AG and YW - both already sizeable garages, lack of room anywhere to build a combined depot for them and would likely lead to an increase in dead mileage.
Quote from: Liberator9 on April 04, 2015, 02:48:37 PM
No point in merging AG and YW - both already sizeable garages, lack of room anywhere to build a combined depot for them and would likely lead to an increase in dead mileage.
I only stated it because their relatively close plus their smaller compared to other garages. I'd like the idea of an MMC appearing on the 11 ;D
BY and PE is out of the question due to the sheer distance of them and the dead mileage would pile quick
So BC is bigger than West Ham by allocation of buses ?! Didn't see that coming !
Quote from: BusFan on April 04, 2015, 10:25:25 PM
So BC is bigger than West Ham by allocation of buses ?! Didn't see that coming !
???
West Ham 222,
BC 218
Quote from: Tony on April 04, 2015, 10:48:47 PM
???
West Ham 222,
BC 218
:-[ Either way, it's only 5 buses. Got to admire BC even more !
West Ham, sounds like it could have possibilities of even more buses, BC has just really expanded allocations through parking vehicles outside. Could be wrong though.
Robert Munster's excellent Londonbusroutes website has PVR requirements for all TfL routes from London garages which reveals the highest run out is Tower Transits Lea Valley Interchange with 230!
http://www.londonbusroutes.net/garages.htm
I honestly think West Ham can easily hold a good deal more vehicles than Birmingham Central.
Is BC full ?! I would surmise that the garage and it's parking is full but is the Adderley Street open yard also full as well ?!
Sorry to bring back an old topic of mine, but I figured for imparting knowledge it should be good, but from an operational point of view what else happens in a garage ?! I'm just brushing up my knowledge of NX.
How often are buses given a "day off" were they remain in the garage (I.e for maintenance purposes or just rest)
Quote from: BusFan on July 08, 2015, 06:16:31 PM
Sorry to bring back an old topic of mine, but I figured for imparting knowledge it should be good, but from an operational point of view what else happens in a garage ?! I'm just brushing up my knowledge of NX.
How often are buses given a "day off" were they remain in the garage (I.e for maintenance purposes or just rest)
Buses are mechanical. They don't "just rest".
They'll have a VI once every 4 weeks, and steam cleans and special cleans and such. And obviously on reduced service days they'll be more buses in the garage.
Quote from: Liverpool Street on July 08, 2015, 06:52:58 PM
Buses are mechanical. They don't "just rest".
They'll have a VI once every 4 weeks, and steam cleans and special cleans and such. And obviously on reduced service days they'll be more buses in the garage.
Thanks
Do they get moved around whilst in the garage or is it a matter of they get a running board and then go on their day
Quote from: ronnoc1k8 on April 03, 2015, 09:14:33 PM
How much are the Tridents? What is the best bus in the fleet in terms of mpg.
Older buses are all around 6 including tridents.... Some Mercs 4.5 but they have a 12 litre engine.... Urban 2's and the first batch of e200's are around 7.5 I believe the Volvo hybrids offer the best mpg but may be wrong.
Am I right in saying from smallest to biggest when it comes to vehicle allocations it's:
Bordesley Green, Pensnett, Yardley Wood, Acocks Green, Coventry, West Bromwich, Perry Barr, Walsall, Wolverhampton (1) Birmingham Central ?!
Quote from: BusFan on July 08, 2015, 11:05:04 PM
Am I right in saying from smallest to biggest when it comes to vehicle allocations it's:
Bordesley Green, Pensnett, Yardley Wood, Acocks Green, Coventry, West Bromwich, Perry Barr, Walsall, Wolverhampton (1) Birmingham Central ?!
Does this look about right? (I've assumed 4763-64/66/71 are at Coventry or are heading there).
Acocks Green, 147 + 50*
1932-50; 2106-18/20; 2201-50* 4023-24/27/29/31-35/37-43/51-52/58-73/76/78/80-82/99-102/4-5; 4507-26/4635-79; 7019-22.
Birmingh8am Central, 221
801-9; 2119/21-52; 4143-89/4218; 4366-68; 4427/33-49/55-74; 4610-34; 4895-4913; 4940-49; 5501-09; 5510-18; 6701-18.
Bordesley, 49
1788-1836.
Coventry, 155 + 1 non-pvc
871-75; 1570-72/79/91/94/1659/78/1687 Health Buzz/1703; 2153-77; 4203-17/19-24; 4319/96-4424; 4450-54; 4687-96; 4763-64/66/71*; 4830-42; 4885-94; 4983-95; 6012-21.
Pensnett, 113
823-30/64-70; 1546/73/93/1627/30/40-41/43/47/57/77/1704/7/43; 2078-2105; 4190-4202; 4346-54/56-59/4425-26/28-32; 4818; 6101-22.
Perry Barr, 177
761-4; 1837-39/41/63-77; 1905-7; 4235-46/51-57/76-91/303-4; 4475-4502; 4697; 4777-81; 4799-4815/17/19-29/43-56; 4914-39; 7023-33.
Walsall, 181
855-60; 1421/36/46-47/75; 1750-86; 1840/42-62/78-95; 1918; 4125-33/41-42; 4258-64/92-4302/5-9/26-32; 4527-34; 4733-37; 4765/67-70/72-76; 4857-84; [6719-58 due].
West Bromwich, 168 [1618/1698 withdrawal due]
751-60; 810-22/31-39; 1560/85/89/1607/13/18/53/67/71/95/98-99; 1951-53; 4044/47-49/53-57/83-87/113-114; 4225-34/47-50/65-75; 4503-6; 4700-17;
4738-62; 4950-82.
Wolverhampton, 200
244; 601/20/32-33/40/62; 840-54/61-63; 2001-29/59-77; 4002/6/9-10/16-18/20-21; 4134-40; 4310-18/20-25; 4535-4609; 5401-09; 5410-21.
Yardley Wood, 130 + 1 preserved
1896-904/9-17/19-31; 3225; 4089-98/106-7/9; 4333-35/37-40/42-45/60-65/69-95; 4698; 4718-32; 6123-48.
Training School, 28
1344-45/49-50/55/68/77/84-86; 1432/34/50; 1462-Static Trainer; 1501/5/8-9/12/14; 1689; 3601; 9023(M723 KPD); 9057(BT57 ENJ); 9315(P315 DVE); 9951/9959; BX54 ZWV.
I thought I'll post this here as opposed to creating a new thread as this a generic thread about garages but how often are fuel tanks at garages replenished ?! Having worked at a petrol station myself I'm just fascinated.
Plus which buses have the largest tanks and which are the most "economical"
Quote from: GeminiFan1991 on January 02, 2016, 06:56:44 PM
I thought I'll post this here as opposed to creating a new thread as this a generic thread about garages but how often are fuel tanks at garages replenished ?! Having worked at a petrol station myself I'm just fascinated.
Plus which buses have the largest tanks and which are the most "economical"
I'm not 100% sure but I think Walsall have 2 tanker deliveries a week, and from my experience on the mk2 enviros they usually use about half a tank a day, I think a full tank is 250 litres?
Quote from: BU07 LGO on January 02, 2016, 08:25:30 PM
I'm not 100% sure but I think Walsall have 2 tanker deliveries a week, and from my experience on the mk2 enviros they usually use about half a tank a day, I think a full tank is 250 litres?
Seems logical taking into account the amount of buses they have there ! From what I remember during my time in the petrol station, I remember tankers holding in excess of 35'000 litres worth of fuel with 1 compartment (Those vertical lines on a tanker) within a tanker being able to carry 7'600 litres ! I'm assuming it's less for the smaller garages ?!
Quote from: Cheese on April 04, 2015, 10:55:57 AM
Haven't checked recently but does Olive Grove in Sheffield still have the largest allocation? It was around 250 at one point, can't remember if it still is.
Sorry to bring back up an old topic on here but I thought it was worth mentioning...
I make it as Olive Grove now at approx 227 (+1 awaiting transfer in) with another 26 buses parked up awaiting scrap, down from around 270 before the latest round of service changes.